Who could possibly shut down Trae Young? Payton? Ntilikina? … De Blasio?
The mayor continued with his basketball-focused press briefings on Tuesday. This time he traded in his Nets look for a Knicks hat and a warning for Young, the Hawks star who torched the Knicks in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series.
“This is very serious, want to get this message to Trae Young on behalf of the people for New York City and anybody that cares about playing basketball the right way: Stop hunting for fouls, Trae,” de Blasio said.
Trash talk that would have Charles Oakley quivering in his Nikes.
Young dropped 32 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds on Sunday. The guard hit the game-winning runner in the final second of Atlanta’s 107-105 triumph. He also made all nine of his free throws.
To truly endear himself to Knicks fans, de Blasio used the words of Nets coach Steve Nash.
“I want to quote Steve Nash — great player, great coach — ‘that’s not basketball,’” de Blasio said. “Trae, that Hawk’s not going to fly in New York City, come on. Play the game the right way, see if you can win and I think the Knicks are going to teach you a lesson.”
The 15,000 fans inside the Garden on Sunday consistently serenaded Young with “F–k Trae Young” chants throughout the evening. Now, Young will also have his hizzoner’s words playing in his head as an added challenge.
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